Slide fastener



April 20, 1948. M, FRANK 2,440,007

SLIDE FASTENER Filed Sept. 14, 1945 v INVENT TjYe/Wza/z W2k ATTORNEYPatented Apr.` 20, 1948 2,440,007 SLIDE FASTENER Herman M. Frank,

New Britain, necticut New Britain. Conn., assignmto The North &CJuddManufacturin cnn.,

g Company,

a corporation of Con- Application September 14, 1945, Serial No. 616,218

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to slide fasteners and, in particular, to theprovision of a new and improved slide fastener interlocking member,element or secon It is an object of this invention to provide such a newand improved interlocking member, or scoop, which is symmetrical, topand bottom, and

-two stringers oi appropriate length may be "pulled-up or connected byinterlocking engagement of their scoops regardless of which end ofrections of its movement over the stringers.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such an interlockingmember or scoop which is of simple form, which is possessed of greatstrength, which affords relatively great security of interlockingengagement and which provides adequate flexibility in operation withoutsacrifice of strength, security or durability.

It is a further object of this invention to provide such a. scoop whichengages with and disengages from the adjacent opposed or complementaryscoops of the opposite slide fastener stringer with minimuminterference, thus reducing frictional wear to a minimum.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improvedslide fastener embodying such interlocking fastener members or scoops asa part thereof.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention Will clearlyappear from the following description, the accompanying drawing, and theappended claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a plan view, fastener embodying, as ing fastener members, thisinvention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary detailed enlarged, isometric view of a singlefastener member or scoop, as shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged plan view, partly in section, ofportions of adjacent coupled ;tringers, illustrating the interlockingrelation- ;hip between the complementary engaging Afaspartly cutaway, ofa slide a part thereof, interlockor scoops, according to tener members,or scoops, shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 of a modified form of interlockingmember, or scoop, according to this invention and Fig. 5 is a viewsimilar to Fig. 3, illustrating the interlocking relationship of themodified form of interlocking fastener members or scoops of Fig. 4, whenengaged.

'I'he most common, known ,slide fasteners are non-universal and-singleacting. -The interlocking fastener members or scoops thereof arenonsyrnmetrical, top and bottom; the interlocking portions of the mostcommon type comprise a projection or crown extending from the upper ortop surface thereof and a concentric, substantially complementary recessor pocket in the lower or bottom surface thereof. For satisfac` toryoperative engagement of the scoops of a pair of stringers all crowns orprojections must extend upwardly: all recesses or pockets must extenddownwardly. To assemble a pair of stringers, only one end of each mayserve as the upper end or top end; this requires much care and time inassembly which is unnecessary where, as in this invention, the scoopsare universal and concentric top and bottom, since either end of aStringer embodying such scoops may be combined with either end of theother stringer in assembly irrespective of which side of eitherStringer, or both, is disposed forwardly of the fastener. Whereas, inthe single acting fasteners of the prior art "popping out" or accidentalseparation or uncoupling of the stringers below the slider was virtuallycatastrophic, generally requiring repair of the fastener, in fastenersac' cording to this invention, movement of the slider, in such cases,downwardly or toward open position, will "heal the fastener byrecoupling the accidentally uncoupled stringere below the slider.

Various attempts have. heretofore. been made to provide scoops which aredouble acting but such structures which have been provided generallywere either non-symmetrical, top and bottom (i. e., provided with bottomsurfaces dissimilar to the top surfaces) or provided with suchcomplicated and intricate arrangements of male and female members and/orsurfaces, such as webs and channels, as to be well nigh incapable ofproduction in the desirable small, light weight, sizes with suchaccuracy as is necessary to achieve smooth, positive operation; whenreduced in size to the necessary extent, the strength of such intricateengaging or interlocking portions became negligible.

According to this invention. all of the above locking fastenerdisadvantages are obviated by provision of a simple scoop constnuctionwherein the engaging, interlocking portions and surfaces are extremelysimple and massive as compared with the size of the scoops; whichsurfaces and portions are concentrically and symmetrically arranged andwherein their arrangement provides a scoop which has an outer or noseportion which is of less height than the central (or inner interlocking)portion for reduction of interference to a minimum, and whichconstruction is possessed, also, of various other advantages which willappear from the following description and the drawing wherein: y

Fig. 1 illustrates the application of one preferred form of thisinvention to a slide fastener comprising a pair of similar stringers ofwhich the right hand stringervis generally designated 1 and the lefthand Stringer is generally designated 8. Each Stringer comprises atextile or other flexible tape or carrier 9 having an edge reinforcementI'Il at its inner edge and a row of similar equally spaced interlockingfastener members, elements, or scoops Il secured thereto in suitableknown manner as by clamping, casting, molding or by an adhesive,depending upon the material of which the interlocking members orelements are formed. Adjacent the interlocking members or scoops I I.the reinforced inner edges of the tapes are connected by a bottom stopor bottom end fitting I2`of known form. A top stop I4 of known form isattached to each reinforced inner tape edge in known manner.

Supported for sliding movement along the rows of fastener members orscoops II, to an extent limited by the rbottom stop I2 and top stops I4,is a slider I5 of conventional form and provided with a manuallyengageable finger piece or pull tab I6 for convenience of operation.

The fastener is opened by manually moving the slider downwardly towardthe bottom stop I2 and closed by moving the slider I5 in the reversedirection, upwardly toward the top stops Il. This closing and opening ofthe fastener is effected through progressive engagement anddisengagement of the fastener members or scoops Il of the stringers 1and 8 by the cam portion of the slider I5 in a manner well known in theart.

In most slide fasteners known today, the intermembers or scoops aredissimilar top and bottom, i. e., the interlocking portions or headseach comprise superposed concentric complementary crown and pocketsurfaces or portions. The scoops or fastener members when separatedabove the slider may be readily engaged by the slider but it isextremely difcult, if not impossible, to reengage them when they areseparated below the slider. This separation generally occursaccidentally but is desirable in certain "applications in the garmentand other arts.

According to this invention, the upper and low er or top and bottomsides of the fastener members or scoops are identical, making theirprogressive engagement by the slider substantially equally easy andconvenient in both directions of movement of the slider, i. e., upwardlyor downwardly on the rows of fastener members I I.

Furthermore, before application of the components or bottom stops I2 andtop stops Il, the

stringers 1 and 8 are reversible, i. e., either end of a stringer may beused as the top end and either side may be the front side since thescoops II are universal. This feature greatly simplifies assembly of thestringers together and attachment of the bottom stop I2 and top stopsI4.

The details of one preferred form of interlocklng'member or scoop.according to this invention, are shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, wherein itwill be seen that the scoop comprises a head portion or interlockingportion I1 and a jaw or leg portion I8. The leg portion I8 includes apair of transversely spaced legsIS with a channel or crotch 2litherebetween,` this jaw or leg portion I8 straddling the inner orreinforced edge of the stringer tape 8 with the channel or crotchengaging the tape edge reinforcement I'II and the legs I9 clampingly orotherwise closely engaging the opposite side surfaces of the Stringertape 9. This jaw or leg portion IB of the scoop I I is of conventionalform, the inventive novelty in the scoop II residing in the form, ornature, of the front end, head or interlocking portion I1 thereof.

The top or upper surface of the scoop II is designated 2l and the bottomor lower surface thereof, being identical, is also designated 2 I. Theidentical side surfaces are both designated 22. The similar rear or legend surfaces are designated 23 and the front or front end surface, whichmay be properly termed the nose or nose surface, is designated 2l.

The length of the scoop II is the distance between the leg end surfaces23 and the nose surface 24. lbetween the top and bottom surfaces 2l andthe width or breadth of the scoop is the distance between the sidesurfaces 22.

The interlocking portion or head portion I1 of the scoop I I isidentical on opposite, top and bottom, sides. Each of these sides isprovided at the outer end with a recess, pocket, or socket 25 and anadjoining complementary crown or projection l2B.

As shown in Fig. 3, the pocket 25 and crown 26 have inclined sidewallswhich act as cam or wedge surfaces guiding the head portions of adjacentscoops I I into and out of engagement with minimum interference,resistance and frictional wear.

It is to be noted that in this preferred form, shown in Figs. 1, 2 and3, the pockets or sockets 25, which extend inwardly from the top andbottom surfaces 2l, are disposed at the outer end of the scoop,outwardly beyond the crowns or projections 26. 'I'his constitutes animportant feature since this outer end travels furthest, and firstengages the adjacent scoops of the opposite stringer during meshing andunmeshing, when the adjacent scoops of the fastener contact and moverelative to one another.

`('Jomparison with the form shown in Figs. 4 and 5 will clearlyillustrate this point since the scoop IIa shownv in Figs. 4 and 5, savefor reversal of the relative position of the pockets 25 and crowns orprojections 26, is otherwise similar t0 the scoop II shown in Figs. 1. 2and 3 and described above.

While the form, or embodiment, illustrated in Figs. i to 3 is preferablefor the above, appar-l ent, reason, nevertheless this last describedembodiment (of Figs. 4 and 5,) embodies a substantial advance over theprior art in simplicity, universality, strength and durability. v

Freedom from transverse disengagement of adjacent engaged scoops iseffectively prevented by the lateral inclined surfaces of the recessesor pockets 25 and the engaged lateral, inclined surfaces of the crownsor projections 26. The noncircular form of the pockets and projectionsinhibits undue relative rotary movement between adjacent engaged scoopsor fastener members.

The height of the scoop is the distance While the illustration in thedrawing has been directed to but two embodiments or modications, it is,of course, to be understood that the size, relative dimensions andproportions of each of the illustrated forms is susceptible of variationand modification within rather wide limits and that other forms areembraced by the spirit of this invention.

Itis, of course, to be understood that the above A description is merelyillustrative eindv in nowise limiting and that I intend to comprehendwithin my invention such modiiications as are included in the scope ofthe appended claims.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desireto secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a slide fastener, a pair of complementary stringers, eachcomprising a relatively flexible carrier with a row of predeterminedlyspaced fastener elements secured to one edge portion thereof, each oi'said fastener elements .being symmetrical top and bottom having a legportion at one end providing attachment to said carrier and aninterlocking portion at the opposite end, said interlocking portioncomprising oppositely disposed concentric pockets in the top and bottomsurfaces of said interlocking member and oppositely disposed concentricprojections substantially complementary with said pockets extending fromsaid top and bottom surfaces and adjacent said pockets said projectionsand pockets each being substantially rectangular andthe projectionsbeing disposed between said pockets and said tape engaging channel andin substantial contiguity with said pockets.

2. The structure deiined in claim l wherein any point on one fastenerelement is spaced from the corresponding point of an adjacent fastenerelement on the same Stringer a distance substantially equal to theheight of the leg portion of a fastener member.

HERMAN M. FRANK.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,846,919Sundback Feb. 23, 1932 25 1,934,084 Murphy Nov. 7, 1933 2,068,939Winterhalter Jan. 26, 1937 2,385,021 Morin Sept. 18, 1945

